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io9Television
All Of Doctor Who‘s Big Thematic Arcs Pay Off, With Clara’s Final Test
This season of Doctor Who has been pretty tightly structured around a few big themes, and all of them were tied up in the season finale. A lot of them, not surprisingly, had to do with Clara Oswald — and we finally found out why she was chosen as the Doctor’s companion. Spoilers! So all … Continued
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io9
Stephen Hawking Biopic Might Steal Your Heart, But Won’t Blow Your Mind
The Theory Of Everything is a remarkable, moving portrait of Stephen Hawking, who overcame unthinkable obstacles to revolutionize science. It’s a beautiful romance that spans the 1960s through the 1980s. Too bad the movie mostly glosses over the actual science that Hawking became famous for. Minor spoilers below… Based on a book by Hawking’s first … Continued
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io9
Big Hero 6 Is One Of The Year’s Best Science Fiction Films, Period
Disney’s new film, Big Hero 6, is a celebration of science and the joy of innovation. In the guise of a superhero origin story, it tells a smart, inventive tale about young science geeks who grapple with issues around the responsible use of technology. It’s one of the best science-fiction films in ages. Minor spoilers … Continued
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Tech News
Who Wrote Women Better, Davies Or Moffat? Neither, Says One Professor
The great debate in Doctor Who fandom these days is between fans of “original” showrunner Russell T. Davies and his replacement, Steven Moffat.* And one of the focal points of that debate comes down to the notion that Davies was better at writing female characters. Not so fast, says one college professor. Piers Britton tried … Continued
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io9
How Eddie Redmayne Captured the Charisma of Stephen Hawking
Eddie Redmayne pulls off a tremendous feat in The Theory of Everything, playing Stephen Hawking from the early 1960s to the late 1980s. Not surprisingly, he’s already getting a lot of Oscar buzz. We sat down with Redmayne for an exclusive interview and he told us what it was like to meet the real Hawking. … Continued
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io9
Frostborn Is The Fantasy Adventure Book I Wish I’d Had When I Was A Kid
Lou Anders’ new novel Frostbornis one of those middle-grade fantasy books that you’ll buy for your kid, just so you can have an excuse to read it yourself. The highest compliment I can give Frostborn is it gave me Lloyd Alexander flashbacks. Minor spoilers ahead… Until recently, Anders (no relation) was best known as the … Continued
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io9
The Trailer For This Drug-Dystopia Movie Really Will Get You Hooked
With just one trailer, the futuristic thriller Narcopolis has gone from being off the radar to being one of next year’s most anticipated films. With a cast that includes Brazil’s Jonathan Pryce, this movie looks both slick and thought-provoking. Let’s hope the whole thing is as good as this first hit. This movie is the … Continued
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io9Trailer Frenzy
Documentary Takes You Deep Inside H.R. Giger’s Studio Of Nightmares
Check out the trailer for Dark Star: H.R. Giger’s World, a documentary that gives you an inside look at the creative process of the man who gave us Alien’s Xenomorph and so much more. What’s amazing about this documentary is how tactile it is — even without being able to touch all of the strange … Continued
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io9
All Of William Shatner’s Tek War Books Will Be Available As E-Books!
Good news! You can now use your e-reader tech to read about William Shatner’s Tek — that fictional cyber-drug that people will kill for in the Tek War series. The final four Tek War books, co-written with Ron Goulart, are coming out from Open Road Media, making the series complete. For those of you who … Continued
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io9
The Most Exciting New Science Fiction And Fantasy Books In November
Science fiction and fantasy never stop moving forward. Because the future is endless, and so is the power of the unknown. So another month brings another slew of incredible books about spaceships, assassins, robots and wizards. Here are 20 books you absolutely cannot miss in November. Top image: U.S. cover of Proxima by Stephen Baxter … Continued
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io9
20 Doctor Who Stories That Are Based On Real Science
Sometimes Doctor Who plays fast and loose with science. (Just like Star Trek and Star Wars.) But this show was created, in part, to teach science to children, and its producers used to subscribe to New Scientist. Here are 20 Doctor Who stories which are based on real scientific ideas. Top image: Horsham Museum, via … Continued
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io9
Get A Signed Edition Of Richard Kadrey’s Cyberpunk Classic Metrophage
Before Richard Kadrey was writing the Sandman Slim novels and other thrilling urban fantasy books, he was writing cyberpunk — and now, you can read his classic novel Metrophage, in a new signed edition. Kadrey has signed the entire first edition of HarperCollins’ new version of Metrophage. Here’s the novel’s synopsis: In a future not … Continued
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io9
According To The Originals, The True Vampire Superpower Is Repression
At first blush, that sounds like nothing new — in the Vampire Diaries universe, one of the most useful abilities vampires have is the capacity for turning their human emotions off, and becoming pure sociopaths. But last night’s Originals hinted that even regular vampires engage in a lot of repression. Spoilers ahead… Basically, the meat … Continued
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io9
What’s The Most Shameless Bid For Fan Nostalgia You’ve Ever Seen?
There’s nothing more thrilling than when a science fiction or fantasy series gives a shout-out to longtime fans or includes a fan-favorite character or plot device. But this can be overdone. And sometimes fan-service goes too far. What’s the most shameless attempt to cater to fan nostalgia? Please include a picture, poster, clip, book cover, … Continued
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io9
Gotham‘s Latest Big Twist Relies On One Hell Of A Retcon
We’re only half a dozen episodes in to the Batman prequel series Gotham, and already we’re seeing some slightly messy retroactive continuity. This really is a comic-book show. Spoilers ahead… In last night’s episode, “The Penguin’s Umbrella,” the show focused on the fall-out of the big reveal that Oswald Cobblepot didn’t die in the first … Continued
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io9
12 Greatest Psychological Dramas That Just Happen to be Set in Space
Humanity is never thrown into so stark relief as when we journey into space. In that alien environment, we find out who we are. And even though space movies are often seen as pure adventures, the best space films are great personal dramas. Here are 12 powerful psychological dramas that happen to be set in … Continued
Diana Biller and Charlie Jane Anders -
io9Television
Terry Nation’s Recurring Nightmare That Helped Inspire The Daleks
The Daleks have been Doctor Who’s most unstoppable villains for pretty much the show’s entire run — but what drives them? What are they a metaphor for? On one level, they’re clearly a version of the Nazis, created by people who lived through World War II. But their creator had another metaphor in mind. Talking … Continued
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io9Trailer Frenzy
First Teaser For Archer Season 6 Shows A Call To Action
The whole team is back in Archer season six, and this brief music-video teaser gives our first glimpses of what they’ve been doing since season five. Not to mention, what they’ll be doing when the show returns in January. Spoilers ahead… Looks like the whole gang is back to the spy biz, after a foray … Continued
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io9
Drive Director Nicolas Winding Refn Directing The Female-Led Neon Demon
It’s officially happening — Neon Demon, Nicolas Winding Refn’s female-driven horror movie previously known as I Walk With The Dead is getting made. Let’s hope Carey Mulligan, who was previously reported as starring in it, still has a big role. Not much is known about the plot of Neon Demon. It’s just described as a … Continued
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io9
What’s The Absolute Worst Name Of Any Comic Book Character Ever?
Comics have a terrific sense of heightened reality, especially old superhero comics. And that’s how you get characters named things like Batroc the Leaper, the Commuter, and Frog-Man. (Sometimes they’re intentionally ludicrous, to be fair.) But what’s the worst or silliest character name in comics? Please include a picture, comics panel, piece of artwork or … Continued